You achieve a glide ratio of about 2 to 1. This means for every 2 feet of horizontal movement, you drop about 1 foot. But it also should be noted that with body manipulation, and selection of wingsuit design, you can alter your forward speed and sink rate. To a fix wing pilot like myself, a 2 to 1 glide ratio means you are essentially dropping like a brick. But to a skydiver, you truly are flying. It all depends on your perspective. You are by definition, a pilot, when wingsuit flying. But in this case, your body in combination with your wingsuit, becomes your aircraft.
Lets examine how wingsuit flying works. After you depart from your jump off point, either a cliff, airplane, or man-made object, you will sink but you will also start to fly horizontally. Actually, the technique for departure from an airplane is completely different from that which is used when departing from a fixed object. One requires entry into a slip stream and relative wind, one does not. You will learn this type of information if you receive formal instruction.
After you depart and sink, you will develop a horizontal velocity component. Your average horizontal velocity, relative to the ground, will be around 100mph. But if you have a tailwind, your horizontal speed can reach up to 140mph to 160mph. Your sink rate is much less compared to typical skydiving. Your vertical terminal velocity when skydiving is anywhere between 110 to 140 mph, depending on body orientation. With wingsuit flying, on average you obtain a vertical velocity of around 40mph.
After you have flown horizontally anywhere from 1 to 2 minutes, depending on your starting altitude, you release your parachute, and then land a short time later. Stamina is also important, as it takes quite a bit of muscle strength to fly a wingsuit to its full capacity. The most important part of this type of flying is to know when to release your parachute.
There are groups around the world that are working on wingsuit fly
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How to Use a Wingsuit For Human Flight
